The Weekly Focal Point - March 5

The Bible says we are all born with a built in double standard – the one we apply to those around us and the other we apply to ourselves. We are innately proficient in detecting the sins and transgressions of others, but we are inept in perceiving our own. Consider the freeway foibles we encounter from time to time. When someone abruptly cuts into our lane, we are quick to assign a slew of incompetencies to the character and intelligence of the careless driver, but when we are the one edging into someone else’s lane we are quick to rationalize and defend our “mistake”. Note how quick we are to assign blame when we are wronged, and how rarely we apply the same standard to ourselves when we wrong others. God draws some sobering conclusions about our keen sense of discernment regarding the sins of others. He tells us in the book of Romans that “at whatever point you judge the other,you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things” (2:1). God’s Spirit has been sent to fix this double standard. His job is to get us to see our sin the same way we tend to see the sins of others – as utterly sinful! This is a critical step in understanding the gospel. We cannot be cleansed of our sin until we clearly see it. Don’t miss this critical step. It is foundational to salvation.

- Pastor Mike

MARCH OFFER

It’s popular for people to say that “death is simply a part of life.” But the truth is, nothing could be more antithetical to life than death. From a biblical perspective, the only thing “natural” about death is that all of nature has been unwillingly made subject to it. The Bible reveals that God’s creation was not initially designed to undergo physical death. Death was the disciplinary response to the rebellion of our archetypal parents. Adam and Eve’s sin—and ours—remind us why death is the sentence we each must bear.

But there is good news. Christ has come to conquer death! At His first coming, He won the war. At His second coming, He will depose our enemy forever. In this wonderful book for children of all ages, this special 25th anniversary edition of The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt tells the story of Christ’s life, death and resurrection from a unique and poignant perspective. I invite you to request a copy when you give a donation of any amount.